David Testa joined the WestLB group in 1997 and is an executive director in their Capital Markets Group heading the team focusing on the origination of Sharia-compliant structured financings.

In particular, David is responsible for the origination of syndicated Islamic facilities and Sukuk issues throughout the GCC region, as well as in Turkey and Western Europe.  The Islamic finance origination team works closely with WestLB's sector teams, as well as the bank's network of overseas offices, particularly Dubai, Singapore, Istanbul and New York.

David has had extensive experience since 1999 of originating and arranging a wide variety of both conventional and Islamic transactions in the GCC.  Recent highlights include the ground-breaking £225m Sharia-compliant leveraged buy-out in the UK of Aston Martin from the Ford Motor Company, as well as a string of high profile transactions in the GCC.  These include the US$850m syndicated facility for Kuwait Finance House, the US$500m facility for Al Rajhi Bank and, in April 2007, the highly successful US$1.1bn syndicated commodity murabaha financing for Arcapita Bank in Bahrain.  Recent capital market issues include the Sukuk al Musharaka deals for A'ayan Leasing and The Investment Dar, both closing in September 2006, as well as the innovative Sukuk al Ijara issue for Dar Al Arkan Real Estate Development Company, which closed in March 2007 and was the first offshore Sukuk issue out of Saudi Arabia.

Prior to joining WestLB David spent 9 years working as a solicitor in London and Tokyo with law firms Slaughter and May and Ashurst Morris Crisp.

David holds an MA in Modern History from Oxford University.